Lifestyle

Dinosaurs Come to Life Again for Dinovember

If you thought dinosaurs were extinct, think again. This week alone, a horde of dinosaurs have already found hidden treasure, performed a shadow puppet show, experienced an accidental Ice Age and had a domestic disaster while ironing.

These are just a few of the dinosaur pranks that Refe Tuma and his wife Susan Tuma have staged for Dinovember, a month-long project in which the Tumas construct nightly dinosaur vignettes.

The project started in 2012 as a way for the Tumas to engage with their four children.

"It kind of was just a way to reconnect with our kids and to get ourselves excited to be parents again," Refe Tuma told Mashable. "My wife, on a whim, decided to set up dinosaurs in the bathroom sink. The next morning, my daughter ran into our room and said, 'The dinosaurs came to life and they are brushing their teeth!'"

The Tumas also have a secondary goal for Dinovember: to disconnect their kids from the digital world and help them rediscover imaginative play.

"Technology is amazing for occupying your kids so that you can get rest," says Refe. "At the same time, I think it is so important to be deliberate with engaging with your kids in the physical world."

And it worked. Almost immediately, Refe noted that his kids were ditching their tech toys to play with plastic dinosaurs. Even their oldest daughter, who is now six, still joins the fun.

"She is definitely on to us, but she is enjoying herself too much to let it up."

It's not only the Tumas' family that loves Dinovember — the rest of the world is tuning into Dinovember too. What started out as a personal project for the Tumas has transformed into a blog and Dinovember Facebook page with hundreds of thousands of fans worldwide. The low-budget production cost makes Dinovember easily accessible to fans.

"A lot of times, Susan and I will just walk through the house and look around and think: What might the dinosaurs get into tonight?" To capture the scenes, the Tumas just use a lamp and an iPhone 4S.

Anyone can join the whimsical dinosaur movement by submitting photos on the Dinovember Facebook page, or by tweeting their photos with the hashtag #dinovember.

"The first few days, we got hundreds of outside submissions each day. People would message us saying that they didn't feel that they were creative, and realized that they can do this imaginative fun thing with their kids. It almost has given them permission to be creative with their kids."

Since the start of the project, the dinosaurs have taken on a life of their own.

"There's Steggy the Steggasourus, Rex the T-Rex. The one that looks like it's yelling or in a constant state of shock is Godzilla. The purple one with the crest on his head is the leader. He seems to be the one calling the shots."

But will the dinosaurs go back to sleep at the end of November? Maybe not.

"The dinos do have a tendency to show up throughout the year, especially around the holidays," says Refe, hinting at future possibilities. "They show up when they are least expected."

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Mashable
is a leading source for news, information and resources for the Connected Generation. Mashable reports on the importance of digital innovation and how it empowers and inspires people around the world. Mashable's record 42 million unique visitors worldwide and 21 million social media followers are one of the most influential and engaged online communities. Founded in 2005, Mashable is headquartered in New York City with an office in San Francisco.